Kosmos

Culture, travel, fashion and culinary delights: the Kosmos pages of Lufthansa Magazin bring you interesting and useful tidbits from around the world

Cake dispenser

In one episode of the television series “Sex and the City,” two of the ladies ate cupcakes and triggered a nationwide trend. It led to two bankers starting the first cupcake bakery chain in 2005, Sprinkles – which promotes its wares with first-rate raw materials and celebrity cupcake nibblers such as Paris Hilton and Oprah Winfrey. These days, some U.S. cities have ATMs where you can “withdraw” fresh Sprinkles anytime, night or day.

Use your illusion

The ravages of time? A portal to another dimension? No – just the incredible work of street artist 1010, who is famed for his clever optical illusions on buildings that make flat surfaces look like cavernous holes.

A-tisket, a-tasket …

Until they were banned in the 19th century, monks from the Buddhist Fuke sect wandered the streets of Japan playing gentle melodies on flutes and begging for alms. The sect died out 150 years ago, but their traditions are recreated for special occasions.

Frankenstein

Mary Shelley’s novel about a man-made creature was published in 1818 and spawned countless stage and film adaptations. Renowned Gothic scholar Sir Christopher Frayling documents the evolution of this phenomenon in his new book.